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Sunday, April 24, 2011

I freely admit, I am blessed, lucky, and even just a little spoiled to be able to participate in a quilting retreat in Indiana every year in May. It's 4 days of incredible fun, fellowship, and quilting!! The retreat is hosted by Angela, and all the ladies have become amazing friends. Most of us only see each other once a year, but when we get together at retreat, it's like we just got together last week! :) The conversations just pick up where we left off.... We all belong to a yahoo group and that helps us to stay connected throughout the year. Of course, a few of the ladies also have blogs now.

Retreat is just a little over two weeks away and the anticipation is almost too much to handle!! :) I've been working on a few retreat projects that are top secret, so no pictures for now. I decided I could show you pictures of what I think I will take to work on. The list keeps changing though! There is no way I'll be able to accomplish all the projects I'm packing, but I like to take a few options...just so I don't get bored. :P Yeah...right.

First up...a project called Points of Pride. It was in the AP&Q magazine last summer and I knew the second I saw the cover that I was going to make that quilt. I've been collecting fabrics ever since...this is just a sampling of my fabrics. It won't surprise you that Robin and Peggy jumped on board as well and they are bringing the same project. :) This isn't a "Quilt in a Day" quilt project, so I'll be happy just getting started and making some progress on this one.

Next up...an OLD, OLD ufo from 2008!! This is one of those Patchwork Party quilts...did you ever do one of those? Kind of an online shop hop...you visited 12 shops and bought a block kit from each and then chose a setting kit from one of the 12 shops. I made the 12 blocks in a timely manner and I think I did that 9 patch sashing at retreat a couple years ago. LOL Now it's heading back to Indiana!

Don't you love the outdoor picture??? It's finally a sunny day and the grass has turned a beautiful green. I just had to get out there and snap a picture. :)

The layout I chose is Geese on the Prairie...nice twist on the fabric line "Prairie Paisley." Oh how I loved that fabric...I have a table runner made from a charm pack of it too! Anyhoo...see that geese border? 128 of those buggers! Can you see why I packed it away? LOL I can do it! I'm precutting some of the units ahead of time, so I can just zip them together at retreat.

Next project in the queue is a baby quilt from this Hooty Hoot fabric. Remember I was on the hunt for it a few weeks back? Well, a couple of blogger friends came to the rescue and Pat hooked me up with Sherry who had some to share! The best part is Pat and Sherry also live in Delaware! In addition to acquiring the needed fabric, we met for lunch and I made a new friend! Thanks Sherry!!

This project is a "if I run out of anything else to do" project. Missouri Star Quilt Company had a Daily Deal too good to pass up and I am now the proud owner of this layer cake. :)

Okay...now I'm really dreaming and maybe I can get it done if I don't waste any time on sleep at retreat...but I love this quilt too! Called "Chain of Faith," it was recently on Moda Bake Shop and I had the two jelly rolls in my stash, so it was a perfect match!

Lastly, I am taking my pineapple blocks and 1.5" strip bin. I promised a few of the girls I'd demo the pineapple ruler, and I also just want to keep moving on this project. Maybe I can add a few blocks to my stack.

Whew!!! That is quite the list of projects for retreat! Who knows how much I'll get done, but I'm going to give it my best shot!! At least I know I have options and there will be no possible way to be bored! :P

Hope you all have a wonderful Easter Sunday.

~~ The greatest man, named Jesus, had no servants, yet they called him Master, had no degree, had no medicines, yet they called him Healer. Jesus had no army, yet kings feared Him. He won no military battles, yet he conquered the world. , Yet he was crucified. He was buried in a tomb, yet He lives today. He is Risen!! ~~

Sunday, April 17, 2011

We had family come for a visit this week and wowsers, did we take them on a sightseeing whirlwind while they were here! Unfortunately, the weather wasn't the best, but we pressed on and did the best we could! We all had a fun time and when we weren't driving to all these destinations, we were home playing games and laughing at memories from the past.

Our first stop...Washington DC. Here is the Capitol Building (the day after the budget crisis...looked pretty quiet that day!)

Jefferson Memorial...

We were just at the tail end of the cherry blossom season....

There were a few lingering blooms....

Washington monument...

Aunt Sue's brother died in Vietnam, this was her first time seeing the memorial....

None of us expected the emotions that came after seeing his name on the wall. Michael James Mooney...he was 18 years old.

Lincoln Memorial... unbeknownst to us, President Obama had been here just an hour or so before we arrived (speaking about the budget agreement).

On the steps of the memorial...Travis, Tammy and Cheryl (Travis' cousins) and their mom, Sue.

The White House....

The next day was Philadelphia....

Independence Hall (under construction)...

Day three....the beaches of Cape Henlopen and Rehobeth, Delaware. It was a gorgeous day that day...

Day 4, NYC! The Statue of Liberty (maybe you can see how cold and WET we were!!)....

And "Wicked" on Broadway!!

a little time in Times Square.....

And of course a tour of the base, with a C-5 flyover timed just perfectly....

The sun is shining in these pictures, but don't let that fool you...it was windy and COLD!

We also took a trip to the Lancaster area, but it was raining so hard, I didn't get many pictures at all. Tammy is also a quilter, so you can bet we made time for a couple Amish quilt stores!! I found a few more fabrics for a project I plan to start soon....

All in all, it was a fun visit...I hope they enjoyed all the sights and experiences! They left to go home yesterday and Travis and I came home from dropping them at the airport and took a nice long nap on the couch. :)

Wednesday, April 06, 2011

I finished the borders for my leader/ender quilt last night...I am so pleased with this one! It's my first leader/ender project and I'm still amazed at how this quilt came together with what seems like no effort at all. (I guess I've blacked out all the hours of cutting scraps to acquire all those pieces, right?) I'm truly hooked on this idea of leaders and enders and can't imagine I'll ever stop sewing them!

Not the best picture because it was taken at midnight...but as you can see, Smokey, was burning the midnight oil right along with me. I laid the quilt out and before I turned around to pick up the camera, there he was, inspecting.

I'm sending this one off to the quilter, but first I have to piece the backing, which will also be from my stash. I also have to decide on a binding....should it be scrappy or one color? I've also been thinking about using a multi color stripe, and I've been keeping my eye out, but so far I haven't found just the right one.

Also, I need a name for this quilt! I keep calling it the "leader/ender quilt." Blah. I am not creative when it comes to stuff like that. The original idea came from Bonnie Hunter's book "Adventures in Leaders & Enders" and her quilt is called Blue Ridge Beauty. The first obvious thing...mine is not blue and I pieced my blocks "wrong" so I wasn't able to achieve the same layout design she has. That really wasn't a problem for me as I'm happy with this layout. I just don't think I can keep calling it Blue Ridge Beauty! The 6" block unit is a buckeye beauty, and when four of them are together, they make a jewel box block. Can any of you creative geniuses out there think of a name for me? There may just be a little prize in it for you if I choose the name you come up with. :)

Saturday, April 02, 2011

Every year, in May, I attend a quilting retreat in Indiana. It's 5-6 days of incredible fun, friendship, laughter, shopping, and of course, quilting! A couple of the highlights are the exchanges that we do...this year we are swapping pincushions and Christmas ornaments, along with a "Secret Sister" exchange. Needless to say, I'm working busy like a bee on these top secret projects. But that makes for a very boring blog because I can't show you pictures of what I'm working on! :P Rest assured, I'll share pictures as soon as I am able. :)

In the meantime, have you ever come across a project you just knew you had to do? That happened to me this week.

Jo at Jo's Country Junction was featured over at Moda Bake Shop with this quilt, called Chain of Faith. I immediately fell in love with it! I love the scrappy look, I love the design of the "chain" running through the blocks, I love the red! I just love it! The pattern calls for two jelly rolls plus a little extra yardage for the chain and border.

(this pictured is borrowed from Jo and Moda Bake shop!)

As further proof that I -need- to make this quilt...I've had these two jelly rolls in my stash for 3-4 years, but never really knew what I wanted to do with them. Talk about perfect! I will need to find the extra yardage, but after a quick look around online, I don't think that will be a problem. :) With the price of fabric increasing, it's always nice to find a way to use what you already have in "the stash!"

I plan to hold off starting this until retreat, but I'll share progress pictures!

Special T's!!!

About Me

Although I love almost all kinds of crafts, my favorite by far is quilting...other favorites are scrapbooking, cross-stitch, embroidery and crochet. I'm a proud Air Force wife, married to my best friend, currently living in Virginia with our two kitties and mom to two of the coolest kids on the planet. :)